I am a list maker…even in retirement from my secular work. For me, what doesn’t get listed, doesn’t get done. It is also very rewarding for me to check that item off the list when it is accomplished. The list has a progression of priorities. One task cannot happen until another task is completed. And so life goes with my lists guiding my behavior and productivity.
As I journal each morning in my conversational prayer with God, the Father, His Spirit guides me to make another list that helps me to mature and grow in Him. I am convicted of some of those “fruits of the Spirit” that I have not tended to or cultivated, have ignored or left undone. His Holy Spirit redirects my thoughts and helps me form a list of tasks that will help me improve my behavior. “Keep a close check on yourself”, writes Paul to Timothy. For me, that means to make a spiritual checklist that keeps me in close contact with the will and purpose of our Father, God and helps me to grow closer to Him.
We can do nothing of significance without God. I am convinced that He guides us to all things that are good for our growth and aid our learning about Him and how He works. Paul also gives Timothy sound advice about how to treat those whom God has called to lead with character traits with another list of how to lead. This list still applies to us today. The theme of this episode seems to be; Know God, Know Yourself, Know The Message, Know Your Audience. Our deeds, good and bad, will be evident. Be driven by God’s love in us.
1 Timothy 5, The Message
17-18 Give a bonus to leaders who do a good job, especially the ones who work hard at preaching and teaching. Scripture tells us, “Don’t muzzle a working ox” and “A worker deserves his pay.”
19 Don’t listen to a complaint against a leader that isn’t backed up by two or three responsible witnesses.
20 If anyone falls into sin, call that person on the carpet. Those who are inclined that way will know right off they can’t get by with it.
21-23 God and Jesus and angels all back me up in these instructions. Carry them out without favoritism, without taking sides. Don’t appoint people to church leadership positions too hastily. If a person is involved in some serious sins, you don’t want to become an unwitting accomplice. In any event, keep a close check on yourself. And don’t worry too much about what the critics will say. Go ahead and drink a little wine, for instance; it’s good for your digestion, good medicine for what ails you.
24-25 The sins of some people are blatant and march them right into court. The sins of others don’t show up until much later. The same with good deeds. Some you see right off, but none are hidden forever.
LEADERSHIP PRINCIPLE #6: Keep a Close Check on Yourself
Leadership Characteristics –
–Fully rely on God. Trust Him with all you are and all you have. We are His. All we have is His.
–Ask God “if there is anything offensive to you, cleanse me.” as the Psalmist prayed.
–Repent with a heart and mind not wanting to return to the old life.
–Look full into the face of Jesus, our Master, Lord and Savior with laser focus so we know what direction to take next.
–“Keep a close check on yourself.” Avoid, “he did it, I can, too” or “my sin is not as bad as his sin” or “everybody’s doing it” mentality.
–Ask God for wisdom, insight and understanding.
–Allow God’s transformation to continue in our lives.
–Ask God to make your lists of to BE and to DO. HE will prioritize your lists in ways you cannot imagine! Where He guides, He provides help all along the journey.
–Do all in a Spirit of love for God and others.
–Care enough to confront others with God’s love and concern for their spiritual well-being and growth.
WarningThe things on our spiritual check list can never be crossed off because we’ll be working on them our whole lives. By listing we are reminding ourselves of what we need to work on to “keep a close check” on our lives. It is only by The Atonement of Jesus Christ can we accomplish anything of eternal significance.
Dear Heavenly Father, You have convinced me that we must do spiritual “business” with You each day to improve our being in You. Thank you for helping us on this journey. Thank you for Your Holy Spirit that points out things in our behavior that could cause us to crash…before crashing. Thank you for always being with us, guiding and directing, loving and protecting and challenging us to grow and bear Fruit. Continue to transform me. Transform your church. Transform the world through your church. In Jesus Name, Amen
What is that? The ending of self. Salvation comes through surrender of self.
Max Lucado writes; “When you recognize God as Creator, you will admire him. When you recognize his wisdom, you will learn from him. When you discover his strength, you will rely on him. But only when he saves you will you worship him.” –Encouraging Word Bible
Let these words simmer in our thoughts as we read the psalm of Asaph for this day.
Psalm 80, The Message
For the director of music. To the tune of “The Lilies of the Covenant.” Of Asaph. A psalm.
1-2 Listen, Shepherd, Israel’s Shepherd— get all your Joseph sheep together. Throw beams of light from your dazzling throne So Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh can see where they’re going. Get out of bed—you’ve slept long enough! Come on the run before it’s too late.
3 God, come back! Smile your blessing smile: That will be our salvation.
4-6 God, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, how long will you smolder like a sleeping volcano while your people call for fire and brimstone? You put us on a diet of tears, bucket after bucket of salty tears to drink. You make us look ridiculous to our friends; our enemies poke fun day after day.
7 God-of-the-Angel-Armies, come back! Smile your blessing smile: That will be our salvation.
8-18 Remember how you brought a young vine from Egypt, cleared out the brambles and briers and planted your very own vineyard? You prepared the good earth, you planted her roots deep; the vineyard filled the land. Your vine soared high and shaded the mountains, even dwarfing the giant cedars. Your vine ranged west to the Sea, east to the River.
So why do you no longer protect your vine? Trespassers pick its grapes at will; Wild pigs crash through and crush it, and the mice nibble away at what’s left. God-of-the-Angel-Armies, turn our way! Take a good look at what’s happened and attend to this vine. Care for what you once tenderly planted— the vine you raised from a shoot. And those who dared to set it on fire— give them a look that will kill! Then take the hand of your once-favorite child, the child you raised to adulthood. We will never turn our back on you; breathe life into our lungs so we can shout your name!
19 God, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, come back! Smile your blessing smile: That will be our salvation.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
We love it when our plans come together. We revel and celebrate when life is smooth sailing on calm seas. If we think about; we might even give God all the glory. But when the storms come with fury and destruction and the waters rise up to our necks and overwhelm us with fear; how do we respond?
Even for those of us who say we believe in God and believe all He says to be really real; we worry when life is challenging in every aspect and in every way! We become weary, stressed and perplexed. Most times our first response is to complain first to God, family, and friends; and not necessarily in that order. If the storm does not cease immediately in our timing we begin to make judgements and search for who to blame.
We think it is right for us to make strong suggestive prayers to God, outlining the problem to Him with our ways He can remedy the circumstance for us—kind of like calling a landlord, demanding him to fix a leaky faucet that is driving us crazy. We must admit, that our primal response in life is for God to “fix it”—with speed and accuracy so we can get back to “normal” living. After all, we are important in life and must carry on the work God gave us to do. So, since we read that nothing with God is impossible; we call on God to fix what we cannot. (Yikes)
Are we beginning to see how much we take God’s Holy Word out of context to fit our longing for control of life? Are we ready to repent, be still before Him and let Him have He way in our lives? What is surrender? Is it only for the bad times or is surrender a daily discipline as worship to God: ALL of Him in ALL we think, say, and do as directed by Him to be ALL He created us to be.
Yes, this is personal and requires some thoughtful consideration through communicating with our Lord. I’ll leave salvation of our souls where it belongs; in His Hands.
Jesus is our Salvation. Jesus is the Only Way to God’s throne of redemption and relationship with God. There is Power in the very Name of Jesus!
Lucado continues with this explanation:
“It’s a “before and after” scenario. Before your rescue, you could easily keep God at a distance. Comfortably dismissed. Neatly shelved. Sure, he was important, but so was your career. Your status. Your salary. He was high on your priority list, but he shared the spot with others.
Then came the storm . . . the rage . . . the fight . . . the ripped moorings . . . the starless night. Despair fell like a fog; your bearings were gone. In your heart, you knew there was no exit.
Turn to your career for help? Only if you want to hide from the storm but not escape it. Lean on your status for strength? A storm isn’t impressed with your title. Rely on your salary for rescue? Many try. Genuinely ask him. He will come.
And from that moment on, he is not just a deity to admire, a teacher to observe, or a master to obey. He is the Savior. The Savior to be worshiped.” –Max Lucado, Encouraging Word Bible
May our first and best response be humbled prayers that first give glory, honor, and praise to God. Acknowledge our God as the One and Only who knows what we need when we need it most. This puts God first and us as His children in the right order.
Be honest with reverent awe for God.Ask Him what He wants to teach us through our suffering. Thank God for being with us always—in good times and in challenging times! Thank Him, as James writes, for our sufferings that mature of faith in God! (James 1) Refrain from telling God what with how to do what you want; instead ask what He wants us to do.
Remember that God loved us so much He planned the greatest solution for all of life from the beginning of Creation—His Son, Jesus. Jesus is the Vine and we are the branches just as Asaph described in his lament to God. Asaph, however, was speaking of God’s people being the vines planted by God throughout the known region to give God glory by telling the world of His greatness as God. God was their salvation!
Lord,
Thank you for cleansing our hearts, renewing our minds, refreshing our souls and restoring the joy of YOUR salvation at work within us. May your will be done in every detail of our lives lived today. Lead us, Lord. YOU are our salvation. “Let the morning bring word of you unfailing love and care for all our trust is in you.” (Psalm 143) I yours and I’m listening.
When do we seriously forget the flowery, repeating, holy prayer words to look up and call on God with all that is in us? Think about it—how bad does our circumstance have to be to fall on our knees in humbled surrender to Him, willing to wait for an answer from Him?
Asaph cries out to God, to remind God of the situation, (as if God does not know). Even though he extols God as the One who can take care of the situation, with a touch of revenge and a heaping dose of bitterness seeping into in his heart, he continues to tell God all the details of Jerusalem’s fall to a pile of rubble with loved ones killed in the because of the marauding barbaric nations. Blame comes next. “Don’t blame us, Lord, for the sins of our parents.” At this point, Asaph is unhinged with stress, broken in mourning the losses, and disgusted at how the barbarians demolished and desecrated God’s Holy Temple. But he still has the faith to call on God!
“How long do we have to put up with this, God?” Asap pleads. Let’s stop there, pause and consider how many times we have asked this same question of God through our own tears, brokenness, and pain. We cannot judge Asaph’s prayer song because we have felt the hurt, suffered the losses, with strong desires for God to “fix it” and make it right for us!
Psalm 79, The Message
A psalm of Asaph.
1-4 God! Barbarians have broken into your home, violated your holy temple, left Jerusalem a pile of rubble! They’ve served up the corpses of your servants as carrion food for birds of prey, Threw the bones of your holy people out to the wild animals to gnaw on. They dumped out their blood like buckets of water. All around Jerusalem, their bodies were left to rot, unburied. We’re nothing but a joke to our neighbors, graffiti scrawled on the city walls.
5-7 How long do we have to put up with this, God? Do you have it in for us for good? Will your smoldering rage never cool down? If you’re going to be angry, be angry with the pagans who care nothing about you, or your rival kingdoms who ignore you. They’re the ones who ruined Jacob, who wrecked and looted the place where he lived.
8-10 Don’t blame us for the sins of our parents. Hurry up and help us; we’re at the end of our rope. You’re famous for helping; God, give us a break. Your reputation is on the line. Pull us out of this mess, forgive us our sins— do what you’re famous for doing! Don’t let the heathen get by with their sneers: “Where’s your God? Is he out to lunch?” Go public and show the godless world that they can’t kill your servants and get by with it.
11-13 Give groaning prisoners a hearing; pardon those on death row from their doom—you can do it! Give our jeering neighbors what they’ve got coming to them; let their God-taunts boomerang and knock them flat. Then we, your people, the ones you love and care for, will thank you over and over and over. We’ll tell everyone we meet how wonderful you are, how praiseworthy you are!
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
As a child, our older daughter would dutifully get in the car on a hot summer day with the family and immediately say loudly; “I’m not at maximum comfort”. This came from a new reader who could now read the A/C levels in front of her. It was cute at first, then this complaint before the engine even revved up, became annoying for all of us—especially in the teen years when she imagined cute might get her way.
We explained, it takes time for the A/C unit to cool the car—just wait for a bit. But when you are not at maximum comfort, waiting is excruciating!
Then we read of Paul, sitting chained to a wall in a dark underground jail, who leads songs of praise with his jail mates and then pens encouraging words from God to the churches God sent him to plant in strategic towns of commerce;
“Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends!
I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:1-9
With reasons to give thanks in all circumstances!
“I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. —Paul, Philippians 4:10-13
Come to Jesus. Surrender to His power, wisdom, and strength. Jesus changes everything about the way we think and behave. His Holy Spirit guides us to all that is truth. Think Jesus. Think Truth. God gives us the perspective we need in all the trials we face with power that sustains us in pain and suffering. Our God is truly an awesome God who cares about us. We will not always be a “maximum comfort” for that is only a measure of man; but we will always be held close by God who knows exactly what we need when we need Him most. Trust Him!
Lord,
No complaints—only praise! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
“Be and do what for others what you would like done for you” with kindness, not expecting anything in return.
“Clean up the area better than the way you found it.”
“Stop complaining and be a helper.”
“When you see trouble; look for the Helpers you can trust.”
“Pray, seek God first, then listen to what He says and then do it.”
These are mere examples of some of the teachings of warnings and truth telling said often by my parents. I was fortunate and blessed by God to grow up in a home with parents who loved me so much they taught me with disciplined words of faith. I did not grow up in a legalistic world of teaching either as relationship with God was our reason for living and walking with God each day. Their unconditional love saturated their teachings about God who is Love. Their words, and the words of my grandparents who also had a solid faith in God through Jesus, were ingrained without my whole being. I am not resentful but grateful that I was cared for enough to be corrected when I needed God most.
When Asaph writes warning to God’s people; he is correcting their often paganistic thinking with words of remembering who God is, what He has done, is doing and will do. “LISTEN to God’s truth!” is the cry of his heart. Inspired by God, Asaph loves and cares enough for people to tell them the truth…
Psalm 78, The Message
Composer–Asaph
1-4 Listen, dear friends, to God’s truth, bend your ears to what I tell you. I’m chewing on the morsel of a proverb; I’ll let you in on the sweet old truths, Stories we heard from our fathers, counsel we learned at our mother’s knee. We’re not keeping this to ourselves, we’re passing it along to the next generation— God’s fame and fortune, the marvelous things he has done.
5-8 He planted a witness in Jacob, set his Word firmly in Israel, Then commanded our parents to teach it to their children So the next generation would know, and all the generations to come— Know the truth and tell the stories so their children can trust in God, Never forget the works of God but keep his commands to the letter. Heaven forbid they should be like their parents, bullheaded and bad, A fickle and faithless bunch who never stayed true to God.
9-16 The Ephraimites, armed to the teeth, ran off when the battle began. They were cowards to God’s Covenant, refused to walk by his Word. They forgot what he had done— marvels he’d done right before their eyes. He performed miracles in plain sight of their parents in Egypt, out on the fields of Zoan. He split the Sea and they walked right through it; he piled the waters to the right and the left. He led them by day with a cloud, led them all the night long with a fiery torch. He split rocks in the wilderness, gave them all they could drink from underground springs; He made creeks flow out from sheer rock, and water pour out like a river.
17-20 All they did was sin even more, rebel in the desert against the High God. They tried to get their own way with God, clamored for favors, for special attention. They whined like spoiled children, “Why can’t God give us a decent meal in this desert? Sure, he struck the rock and the water flowed, creeks cascaded from the rock. But how about some fresh-baked bread? How about a nice cut of meat?”
21-31 When God heard that, he was furious— his anger flared against Jacob, he lost his temper with Israel. It was clear they didn’t believe God, had no intention of trusting in his help. But God helped them anyway, commanded the clouds and gave orders that opened the gates of heaven. He rained down showers of manna to eat, he gave them the Bread of Heaven. They ate the bread of the mighty angels; he sent them all the food they could eat. He let East Wind break loose from the skies, gave a strong push to South Wind. This time it was birds that rained down— succulent birds, an abundance of birds. He aimed them right for the center of their camp; all round their tents there were birds. They ate and had their fill; he handed them everything they craved on a platter.
But their greed knew no bounds; they stuffed their mouths with more and more. Finally, God was fed up, his anger erupted— he cut down their brightest and best, he laid low Israel’s finest young men.32-37 And—can you believe it?—they kept right on sinning; all those wonders and they still wouldn’t believe! So their lives wasted away to nothing— nothing to show for their lives but a ghost town. When he cut them down, they came running for help; they turned and pled for mercy. They gave witness that God was their rock, that High God was their redeemer, But they didn’t mean a word of it; they lied through their teeth the whole time. They could not have cared less about him, wanted nothing to do with his Covenant.
38-55 And God? Compassionate! Forgave the sin! Didn’t destroy! Over and over he reined in his anger, restrained his considerable wrath. He knew what they were made of; he knew there wasn’t much to them, How often in the desert they had spurned him, tried his patience in those wilderness years. Time and again they pushed him to the limit, provoked Israel’s Holy God. How quickly they forgot what he’d done, forgot their day of rescue from the enemy, When he did miracles in Egypt, wonders on the plain of Zoan. He turned the River and its streams to blood— not a drop of water fit to drink. He sent flies, which ate them alive, and frogs, which drove them crazy. He turned their harvest over to caterpillars, everything they had worked for to the locusts. He flattened their grapevines with hail; a killing frost ruined their orchards. He pounded their cattle with hail, let thunderbolts loose on their herds. His anger flared, a wild firestorm of havoc,
An advance guard of disease-carrying angels to clear the ground, preparing the way before him. He didn’t spare those people, he let the plague rage through their lives. He killed all the Egyptian firstborns, lusty infants, offspring of Ham’s virility. Then he led his people out like sheep, took his flock safely through the wilderness. He took good care of them; they had nothing to fear. The Sea took care of their enemies for good. He brought them into his holy land, this mountain he claimed for his own. He scattered everyone who got in their way; he staked out an inheritance for them— the tribes of Israel all had their own places.
56-64 But they kept on giving him a hard time, rebelled against God, the High God, refused to do anything he told them. They were worse, if that’s possible, than their parents: traitors—crooked as a corkscrew. Their pagan orgies provoked God’s anger, their obscene idolatries broke his heart. When God heard their carryings-on, he was furious; he posted a huge No over Israel. He walked off and left Shiloh empty, abandoned the shrine where he had met with Israel. He let his pride and joy go to the dogs, turned his back on the pride of his life. He turned them loose on fields of battle; angry, he let them fend for themselves. Their young men went to war and never came back; their young women waited in vain. Their priests were massacred, and their widows never shed a tear.
65-72 Suddenly the Lord was up on his feet like someone roused from deep sleep, shouting like a drunken warrior. He hit his enemies hard, sent them running, yelping, not daring to look back. He disqualified Joseph as leader, told Ephraim he didn’t have what it takes, And chose the Tribe of Judah instead, Mount Zion, which he loves so much. He built his sanctuary there, resplendent, solid and lasting as the earth itself. Then he chose David, his servant, handpicked him from his work in the sheep pens. One day he was caring for the ewes and their lambs, the next day God had him shepherding Jacob, his people Israel, his prize possession. His good heart made him a good shepherd; he guided the people wisely and well.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
One thing we learn from history is that we don’t learn from history. We read the history of God’s chosen people and wonder why the people in the stories were so foolish and whiny; then we behave in some of the same ways, maybe even worse, then invent rationalizations for our own behaviors! Bottomline: History of sin repeats itself because evil still present various ways to sin. And we fall for it.
If you study the Bible and church history, you discover that Israel made that same mistake over and over again. Fortunately, our God’s heartache over His people, the center of his anger, because He wanted the best for them not their worst, didn’t last long. Our Faithful, loving Father God gave them plenty of opportunities to come back to Him, trust and obey Him, because of their love for Him.
As Asaph reviewed the history of his people, he saw a sad record of forgetfulness, faithlessness, foolishness, and failure, and he sought to understand what it all meant. These things were written for the profit of believers today. Paul, a learned scholar of The Law who because a disciple of Jesus Christ, writes to the church in Corinth. This was church full of idolatry, orgies, division, selfishness, pride, sexual misconduct and other behaviors not of God. New Christians wanted to believe in Jesus but clung to their former sin filled lifestyle. God and sin do not mix. Here’s what Paul wrote with warnings from Israel’s history;
“For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.
Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry. “We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. We should not test Christ, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.
These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come. So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. –Paul,1 Corinthians 10;1-13, NIV
Paul warned that privileges were no guarantee of success. Israel had been delivered from Egypt by the power of God, just as the Christian believer has been redeemed from sin. Israel ate the manna from heaven and drank the water God provided, just as Christians nourish themselves on the spiritual sustenance God supplies (See John 6-7). However, these spiritual privileges did not prevent the Jews from falling into sin.
Knowledge of God does not keep us from sinning; therefore warnings are necessary when we are led to sin. God knows our hearts. Jesus, Son of God, knew hearts while He walked the earth to convict; not condemn but convict people of their sins who have to turn from sin to God’s saving grace! God followed up by sending new believers the third part of Himself to come live in our hearts to guide us to all that is Truth—His Holy Spirit who comes with power to help us trust and obey and run from temptations meant to distract us from God, deceive our thinking about God with the goal to destroy of faith.
Jesus came to warn us, cared enough to show us how to avoid evil, and loved us enough to die for us, paying the debt for our sins that hold us in bondage. Jesus is truth and was God’s once and for all Way back to Him.
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”—Jesus, John 14:6 ESV
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.—Jesus, John 14:15-17, ESV
“These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”—Jesus, John 14:25-26, ESV
Lord,
May we remember. As I remember, I repent. Cleanse my heart, renew my mind, refresh my souls with your new tender mercies fresh each day, and continually restore the joy of your salvation at work within me. You living in me is the only way to peace with God. Help us to tell our children to tell their children and all the generations to come of your saving grace and unending love for us—demonstrated by you, Lord Jesus!
We see it often when grocery shopping near the candy aisle or at the mall near a toy store—a toddler screaming to the top of his/her lungs demanding that they must have what they so desperately want—and they want it now, not later. They have no idea of the cost of the thing they demand to have right then and there. They are not thinking of the inventory of toys they have at home that occupy their attention daily. They do not care what you think nor are they thinking of how you will handle the situation as they throw themselves on the floor of the store and scream as if someone is physically attacking them. They want what they see now and do not understand why you as their parent decide not to get it for them. How would we respond if we were the mom or dad of the screaming little human we gave birth to only a few years earlier?
Do we smack their hands until they stop yelling, with “I’ll give you something to cry about!” (I never quite understood those words.)
Do we look around to see who is looking at them and now us in despair?
Do we throw our own temper and join them on the floor to prove we can be demanding too? (Yeah, that’ll teach them.) (Sarcasm)
Do we leave our purchases behind, leave the area, and find a quiet place to talk with them without the attention of onlookers? Do we remind them that our love for them never stops no matter how loud they yell? Do we hold them until the crying ceases and they relax in our arms of love?
Do we just wait until the tantrum is over; then go on about our way as if nothing happened?
Do we give in, buy what they want so they will stop yelling? Does this demonstrate our love for them or just wanting to control the situation quickly without teaching them?
We have all seen these various ways that parents handle the temper outburst of their children. The teaching responsibilities of parents are weighty and not easy. It will never be easy. They will always be our children no matter what their age! Our prayers will never cease for them and our love will remain unchanging and forever.
But we have supreme help! By wholly leaning on God’s wisdom with learning to parent by His example of being a forever loving, patient, faithful, Father to us, we can do this. We can learn to be like Him as one who waits until the yelling stops to lean down, teach us and help us to remember His love for us.
Parents, we can do this—after prayers requesting help from our Father in Heaven, in Jesus Name! Prayers come with His power to overcome young tempers with our own relentless love for our children until the tantrums cease.
The Psalmist, Asaph is having a bit of temper tantrum in front of our Father God who has heard it all! Asaph is overstressing about his current conditions and circumstances that are out of his control—as most of life is uncontrollable! After yelling out to God in despair; Asaph remembers to remember! He remembers all ways that God has shown is love to His people and He is grateful. His grateful remembering shifts his thinking and refocuses his mind to God who never leaves His people and will always love them faithfully.
Psalm 77, The Message
I yell out to my God, I yell with all my might, I yell at the top of my lungs. He listens.
2-6 I found myself in trouble and went looking for my Lord; my life was an open wound that wouldn’t heal. When friends said, “Everything will turn out all right,” I didn’t believe a word they said. I remember God—and shake my head. I bow my head—then wring my hands. I’m awake all night—not a wink of sleep; I can’t even say what’s bothering me. I go over the days one by one, I ponder the years gone by. I strum my lute all through the night, wondering how to get my life together.
7-10 Will the Lord walk off and leave us for good? Will he never smile again? Is his love worn threadbare? Has his salvation promise burned out? Has God forgotten his manners? Has he angrily stomped off and left us? “Just my luck,” I said. “The High God retires just the moment I need him.”
11-12 Once again I’ll go over what God has done, lay out on the table the ancient wonders; I’ll ponder all the things you’ve accomplished, and give a long, loving look at your acts.
13-15 O God! Your way is holy! No god is great like God! You’re the God who makes things happen; you showed everyone what you can do— You pulled your people out of the worst kind of trouble, rescued the children of Jacob and Joseph.
16-19 Ocean saw you in action, God, saw you and trembled with fear; Deep Ocean was scared to death. Clouds belched buckets of rain, Sky exploded with thunder, your arrows flashing this way and that. From Whirlwind came your thundering voice, Lightning exposed the world, Earth reeled and rocked. You strode right through Ocean, walked straight through roaring Ocean, but nobody saw you come or go.
20 Hidden in the hands of Moses and Aaron, You led your people like a flock of sheep.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Grown-ups still have tantrums too. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” in this when frustrated by life’s circumstances. We cry out to God when life does not give us what we want or think we cannot do without. We cry out to God when unexpected circumstances overwhelm us and our peace fades to despair with woe-is-me attitudes. We say unloving and unkind words or do hurtful things out of frustration that affect everyone around us.
But God does not walk away; He waits until the irrational yelling ceases and we are ready to listen. Our Father reminds us of all He has done, is doing, and will continue to do in our lives committed to Him because He loves us still. God also disciplines us by helping us clean up the mess we make when then our tempers flare and hurt others in the fallout of our words of bitterness. God does not condemn us; He convicts us of our sins then corrects us with unconditional love. God then comforts with knowledge of His compassionate work of salvation going on within us then compels us once more with desire to be like Him as we walk with Him.
Our best response?
Listen to Him. Embrace the grace God gives. Tap into the power of His Holy Spirit living in us to lead us to truth. Read about Jesus who was the Word made flesh and lived on earth among all humans to teach God’s relentless unchanging love, boundless mercy, and unending grace. Then, with the Spirit leading us, walk with Him. Be transformed by Him who loved us so much He died for our sins so that we might live eternally with Him.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17
And like Asaph; “Once again I’ll go over what God has done, lay out on the table the ancient wonders; I’ll ponder all the things you’ve accomplished, and give a long, loving look at your acts. God! Your way is holy! No god is great like God!” Psalm 77 Lord,
I remember. I repent. I surrender to your transforming work within me. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Lead me, Lord. All day long, I will meditate on the works of your Hands.
Most of us are list makers, even if we don’t write our list on paper or in “notes” on our phone, we make mental lists. Type A people, like me, not only write items on our list; we desire to aggressively achieve the list so we can cross the items off as they are complete. Crossing off tasks from our agenda gives us pure joy and makes us happy—until we remember what we forgot to put on the list! Right? Come on, who are my list-making people out there? This trait is good and it can be bad.
As we read, study and pray the songs of the Psalm composers; we begin to realize the lists the songwriters are making to God! Almost every psalm sung begins with a list for God to do! Many psalms at least begin with a list of what God has done as if to coddle God into complete their latter lists of requests that are soon to follow! Take note, learn and thank God for being patient with his children BEFORE we give Him our lists of “to dos”! Yikes, we need more training! Hang in there, it’s coming!
However, this psalm has a different ending. Instead of the lists of yes and amens to God, the Psalmist commands the Singers to “Do for God what you said you do.”(Ouch) The Psalmist is calling God’s people to task! “He is after all your God!”
Psalm 76, The Message
1-3 God is well-known in Judah; in Israel, he’s a household name. He keeps a house in Salem, his own suite of rooms in Zion. That’s where, using arrows for kindling, he made a bonfire of weapons of war.
4-6 Oh, how bright you shine! Outshining their huge piles of loot! The warriors were plundered and left there impotent. And now there’s nothing to them, nothing to show for their swagger and threats. Your sudden roar, God of Jacob, knocked the wind out of horse and rider.
7-10 Fierce you are, and fearsome! Who can stand up to your rising anger? From heaven you thunder judgment; earth falls to her knees and holds her breath. God stands tall and makes things right, he saves all the wretched on earth. Instead of smoldering rage—God-praise! All that sputtering rage—now a garland for God!
11-12 Do for God what you said you’d do— he is, after all, your God. Let everyone in town bring offerings to the One Who Watches our every move. Nobody gets by with anything, no one plays fast and loose with him.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
I confess. I wake to greet God; but nanoseconds later my mind begins to form my “list” for the day ahead. I have to work hard to focus on God first and allow Him to form my agenda for each day. But this discipline has gotten so much easier with time because my relationship with God has grown and is growing more intimate each day!
Time with God first has become an exercise I look forward to each morning. I almost run to meet our Lord Jesus! Hence, I have reduced my breakfast routine to grabbing coffee and a cup of Cheerios to sustain me as I talk with God. It begins, as Jesus taught us to prayer, with a more holy “list” in this order;
Hallowed is Your Name, indeed. Holy and great are you, Lord God of all!
Your Kingdom come; Your Will be done in all the details as this delights You!
You give us another day to walk humbly with you with mouths to declare Your glory because of our love and obedience as we seek justice and love mercy like you do.
You forgive as we forgive others in ways we would not have done before knowing You.
You leads and warns us of temptations of evil meant to distract, deceive, and deconstruct our faith in Him with the goal of destroying our souls. YOU are our Deliverer with power given to Your Holy Spirit living within us—Evil cannot overcome the Overcomer of our souls surrender to You!
We give you, Lord all glory, honor, and praise forever and ever, Amen!
RITUAL VERSUS RELATIONSHIP—IT’S PERSONAL!
This comes from daily surrender of what I think I want or need to God who knows exactly what I need most—a personal relationship that is intimate and growing.
Many years ago, I was led to journal my prayers by my spiritual mentors. It was hard to do at first; I felt like my words were becoming “repetitious babbling” that Jesus warned us not to do for obvious reasons. That’s why I leaned heavily on the prayer Jesus taught His disciples as the beginning of my prayers. This prayer of who God is and what Jesus did along with His Holy Spirit at work within us right now brings my focus to full attention and transforms my heart while renewing my mind! I didn’t do that—God did!
God looks for those seeking Him with pure hearts committed to Him and then He blesses us by growing His character traits in us! God’s character traits are listed by Paul in Galatians 5. These traits/fruits transform our hearts, minds, and souls! They are not a ritual with a check list of duties; but a relationship with God which deepens daily!
Surrendered hearts prompts God to nourish our growth in becoming more like Him. In the beginning we were made in His image; as our relationship grows, we begin to be and do what He does! In this transformation, which is ongoing and lasts until we see Him face to face, we amaze even ourselves as we begin to bear God’s traits also known as spiritual “fruits”. These character traits, listed by Paul are “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Paul says there is no law against being too loving and kind to each other!
Paul adds; “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” This is how the Apostle Paul explains a growing, intimate relationship with God which is the most important relationship we will ever have because God is Life! But it requires a surrendering daily from our lists to His agenda which is for our good and His glory! It does not matter what vocation, phase, or stage of life we live—seek God first. (Romans 12 tells us how)
What we learn is that in opening our hearts to God, whether in crisis or calm, we trust our God who knows our hearts and what we need most with faith that He delivers in ways beyond our wildest dreams or imaginations. This intimacy in relationship is not a ritual but a longing, thirst, and hunger to know God more with a desire to be like Him as we walk with Him.
THIS is one of the reasons for writing Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus) each morning. It has become a way to glory the God who saved me and made me whole in His Presence. Writing (typing actually) my prayers in my journal to Him keeps the focus on Him and sets the tone for the day. Turning to His Word for how to be like Him is a must.
My prayers have transformed from lists of requests to lists of how grateful I am to God! “Come to His courts with thanksgiving”, the Psalm writers cry out. I get it. Thanksgiving puts all the focus on God helping us to see Him more clearly. Clarity of who God becomes dependency and trust that He will provide in all circumstances without telling Him what to do on our behalf—He’s already doing it! It is time we do what we said we would do for God by His leading. He’s probably already told you what to do, now do it!
I am also a morning person who married a person who is not. After 55 years of marriage, we have worked as a team “submitting” to each other’s inner strengths and preferences in life. But what makes us work is that we totally agree on what matters in this life—a relationship with Jesus who we trust and obey. God is our Father, Jesus is our Savior and Lord, the Holy Spirit lives in us to guide us to what is true. God is first, each other second, then our children and grandchildren then others. We love with the love of God in our hearts. We believe that real love comes from God who is love. Then we tell the world who needs to know God’s love so they can have this personal relationship with Him, too.
Lord,
I pray for all who are reading to see YOU in these writings of praise for who YOU are, what YOU do, with what YOU want us to be and do with how to do it from YOUR Word! To YOU be all glory, honor, and praise! Life is all about YOU! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I’m a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll when it comes to tastes in music. I also enjoy Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony when done well by a talented orchestra who love to play what it called classical music. I like a good hymn with a message and I like an upbeat contemporary song with thanksgiving to God that gets me up to dance to the rhythm with joy in my heart!
I like to specifically listen for each instrument then sit back and listen to the piece being played as a whole. Music moves our souls before the lyrics are heard just like the Singer moves our hearts and minds to seek Him as we desire to know Him.
We know that music can draw us into a song’s melody and give us a picture of love, joy and peace. But if the song is presented poorly with less than stellar harmonies and bad lyrics; it can push us away. The search for most goes on or gives up in seeking to find the perfect Song with a Singer who knows the “notes” to sing. Seek the Song, be His Singer!
This is my story; this is my song…
“True worship centers on the Lord and not on us, our personal problems, or our “felt needs.” We praise God for who He is—His glorious attributes—and for His wonderful works. God’s name is a synonym for God’s person and presence. He is indeed “A very present help in trouble” (Ps. 46:1), and when God’s people call on the Lord, they know He will hear them. We thank the Lord for all He has done, and we tell others about His wonderful works. Though God wants us to bring our burdens to Him and seek His help, worship begins with getting our eyes of faith off the circumstances of life and focusing them on the Lord God Almighty.”—Warren Wiersbe, Wiersbe Study Bible
The Song reigns forever! His Singers proclaim His mighty, glorious works!
Aspah is one of the Singers best composers, trained by King David!
Psalm 75, The Message
For the director of music. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” A psalm of Asaph. A song.
We thank you, God, we thank you— your Name is our favorite word; your mighty works are all we talk about.
2-4 You say, “I’m calling this meeting to order, I’m ready to set things right. When the earth goes topsy-turvy And nobody knows which end is up, I nail it all down, I put everything in place again. I say to the smart alecks, ‘That’s enough,’ to the bullies, ‘Not so fast.’”
5-6 Don’t raise your fist against High God. Don’t raise your voice against Rock of Ages. He’s the One from east to west; from desert to mountains, he’s the One.
7-8 God rules: he brings this one down to his knees, pulls that one up on her feet. God has a cup in his hand, a bowl of wine, full to the brim. He draws from it and pours; it’s drained to the dregs. Earth’s wicked ones drink it all, drink it down to the last bitter drop!
9-10 And I’m telling the story of God Eternal, singing the praises of Jacob’s God. The fists of the wicked are bloody stumps, The arms of the righteous are lofty green branches.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Going a bit deeper in this Song and Singer analogy, I refer to C.S. Lewis who used this idea in his writings to explain the foundational concept of creation. In C.S. Lewis’s The Magician’s Nephew, he writes of the protagonist Aslan who creates the world of Narnia through song. This concept mirrors C.S. Lewis’s broader philosophical writings on God as the ultimate Singer and Creator.
In the opening of the world of Narnia, Aslan the lion begins to sing in the darkness. His voice is described as rich, wild, and beautiful, echoing across the void. As he sings, the stars are born, the sun rises, and the landscape bursts into life.
This act of creation establishes a clear metaphysical hierarchy in Narnia:
The Singer (Aslan): He represents the Creator (God). He is the author, the breath of life, and the source of all existence.
The Song (The Creation): Narnia itself is the song. It exists because of Aslan, reflects his will, and is a beautiful manifestation of his voice.
The Characters: All living creatures are considered “notes” in the Song. For Narnians, the moral imperative is to align their own lives (the melody) with Aslan’s overarching Song rather than trying to sing their own selfish tune.
This dynamic also stems from C.S. Lewis’s famous writings on human longing, particularly in Mere Christianity. Lewis argued that every natural desire in humans corresponds to a real object that can satisfy it—if we are hungry, there is food; if we are thirsty, there is water. Therefore, he concluded that if we find in ourselves a desire and a longing for eternity that nothing in this temporal world can satisfy, it means we were created for another world.
The Singer created the notes for His Song “in His own image”. We are the masterpiece of God’s creation! We were designed to desire the Singer with a longing to be with Him! We are Song whom God Sings over in delight! What amazing love!
Lewis argued the ultimate Singer (God) is the only one who can complete the melody.
Do you agree?
AND check out, “The Singer Trilogy” A Classic Retelling of Cosmic Conflict by Calvin Miller for more deep-sea thinking! Hundreds of thousands have thrilled to this extraordinary retelling of a life unmatched in human history. Through the story of the Singer, his Star-Song and his battles with the World Hater, Calvin Miller has created a book full of life. Now, in one volume, you will find a powerful tale of incarnation and redemption.
But one truth remains—God.Trust God, the Composer to be and do who and what He is, was and always will be and can do as He creates His masterpiece of melodies among His created. HE is God. We are not.
This is my story; this is my Song
Praising my Savior all the day long.
This is my story; this is my Song
Praising my Savior all the day long…
Lord,
What blessed assurance to know that no matter what; YOU reign! There is nothing on earth that happens to us or by us that escapes your notice. Thank you for being with us always, for saving our souls for eternity, and giving us a glimpse daily of your glory at wok all around us. To you be the Glory, great things You have done! May we Sing your Song loud and long so others will know and join in the chorus!
We must never forget who God is when we are raw from suffering on earth in circumstances that are out of our control. We must never forget God is sovereign over all because he created all when slander rises up against us and against God in ways meant to overwhelm us and bring us down. In these moments of testing our faith; we want revenge. But only God can bring about justice. The tough rely on God.
Asaph was tired of being stepped on. He felt rejected, defeated, and forgotten. He prayed that God would restore Israel and grant revenge. But God had other plans. God always has a better plan. Trust God. Listen to Him.
Psalm 74, The Message
Of Asaph.
You walked off and left us, and never looked back. God, how could you do that? We’re your very own sheep; how can you stomp off in anger?
2-3 Refresh your memory of us—you bought us a long time ago. Your most precious tribe—you paid a good price for us! Your very own Mount Zion—you actually lived here once! Come and visit the site of disaster, see how they’ve wrecked the sanctuary.
4-8 While your people were at worship, your enemies barged in, brawling and scrawling graffiti. They set fire to the porch; axes swinging, they chopped up the woodwork, Beat down the doors with sledgehammers, then split them into kindling. They burned your holy place to the ground, violated the place of worship. They said to themselves, “We’ll wipe them all out,” and burned down all the places of worship.
9-17 There’s not a sign or symbol of God in sight, nor anyone to speak in his name, no one who knows what’s going on. How long, God, will barbarians blaspheme, enemies curse and get by with it? Why don’t you do something? How long are you going to sit there with your hands folded in your lap?
God is my King from the very start; he works salvation in the womb of the earth. With one blow you split the sea in two, you made mincemeat of the dragon Tannin. You lopped off the heads of Leviathan, then served them up in a stew for the animals. With your finger you opened up springs and creeks, and dried up the wild floodwaters. You own the day, you own the night; you put stars and sun in place. You laid out the four corners of earth, shaped the seasons of summer and winter.
18-21 Mark and remember, God, all the enemy taunts, each idiot desecration. Don’t throw your lambs to the wolves; after all we’ve been through, don’t forget us. Remember your promises; the city is in darkness, the countryside violent. Don’t leave the victims to rot in the street; make them a choir that sings your praises.
22-23 On your feet, O God— stand up for yourself! Do you hear what they’re saying about you, all the vile obscenities? Don’t tune out their malicious filth, the brawling invective that never lets up.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Why did God permit a pagan nation to defeat the Jews and destroy their Holy City and sacred temple, and why was He doing nothing about it?
Here’s the background history that prompted Asaph’s song of lament to God;
“The Lord, the God of their ancestors, sent word to them through his messengers again and again, because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place. But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his words and scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the Lord was aroused against his people and there was no remedy. He brought up against them the king of the Babylonians, who killed their young men with the sword in the sanctuary, and did not spare young men or young women, the elderly or the infirm. God gave them all into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. He carried to Babylon all the articles from the temple of God, both large and small, and the treasures of the Lord’s temple and the treasures of the king and his officials. They set fire to God’s temple and broke down the wall of Jerusalem; they burned all the palaces and destroyed everything of value there.
He carried into exile to Babylon the remnant, who escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and his successors until the kingdom of Persia came to power. The land enjoyed its sabbath rests; all the time of its desolation it rested, until the seventy years were completed in fulfillment of the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah.” –2 Chronicles 36:15-21, NIV
Even though the prophets had warned that judgment was coming, the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple were catastrophic events that shook the people’s faith. As he surveyed the situation, Asaph moved from despair to confidence and in the end affirmed that all was not lost.
The “remnant” was a group of God’s faithful people who escaped the sword and lived to serve God by trusting and being obedient to him, even as slaves to the Babylonians. The Bible is full of faith stories of people who in spite of their circumstances chose to believe in God who is above all, knows our need, and will always be with us through it all with protection for our souls.
Also found in Chronicles are words I quote often; “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” 2 Chronicles 16:9a. A prophet (seer) comes to King Asa who did good in the eyes of the Lord, until he didn’t. The king began as a leader of God but when God gave him victory, he took all the glory. His arrogant pride developed which led to not seeking the Lord. He trusted in his own resources and no longer trusted God in decision making concerning war and the protection of God’s people as king. Instead, he trusted in himself and manipulated others who would agree with him. It did not end well for King Asa. That verse quoted often ends with this statement of truth: “You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”—2 Chronicles 16:9b.
The fundamental problem was not Judah’s lack of defenses but King Asa’s lack of faith. Our lack of faith is pleasing to our Enemy as we become prey in his hands of evil.
Revenge is not as sweet as it sounds is not in our “job descriptions” as believer of Jesus Christ who redeemed us for our own sins. Our work, in God’s view, is to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God. Revenge is not a humble act of obedience.
“As you watch the news, what makes you angry? What makes you want to get revenge? Next time you are tempted to seek revenge, stop. See aggressors as people who need God. Pray that God will meet that need.”—Max Lucado, Encouraging Word Bible
We will never look into the eyes of someone who God does not love like He loves us.
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”, writes Paul. If that doesn’t humble us; then the enemy has already defeated our faith. Let’s read the context of this statement as well;
Righteousness Through Faith In Jesus
“But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in JesusChrist to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be justand the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded.”—Paul, Romans 3:21-27, NIV
Even though God had every reason to punish us for our sins; He did not. Instead, God sent His Son, Jesus to die as the sacrifice for our sins. Jesus, who had no sin, became sin, of the world, so that He could pay the debt we owe for our sins.
We cannot earn this redemption, fight for it, nor do we deserve it. So, we have nothing on earth to boast about—only Jesus crucified and resurrected to give us hope of eternal life.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17
Theologians have divided the Psalms into sections for study and review. We are beginning part three of our journey of praying through the Psalms written by humans in need of God for His wisdom and help. God delivers all He promised and more for believing people surrendered and committed to Him. The “songs” written are honest reflections of His Goodness in prose of praise that can be sung in celebration of who He is with prayers of thanksgiving for what He has done, is doing and will do in the lives of all who believe and follow Him.
The Psalms most often begin with lament and end with how God delivered on His promise to always be with us as He continually works on our behalf in ways beyond our wildest dreams. God is God. God was, is and always will be God. We are not Him. To God be the glory!
For clarity and understanding, let us return to remember the words of Eugene Peterson, a pastor and theologian who taught his congregation how to pray the Psalms by paraphrasing the words into contemporary English for more understanding of the Word. Peterson’s words of this particular portion of his introduction about the Psalms helps us to know the intention and attention of personal, desperate, honest prayers to God who is God alone and worthy to be praised as God. He writes;
“Prayer is elemental, not advanced, language. It is the means by which our language becomes honest, true, and personal in response to God. It is the means by which we get everything in our lives out in the open before God.
But even with the Psalms in their hands and my pastoral encouragement, people often tell me that they still don’t get it. In English translation, the Psalms often sound smooth and polished, sonorous with Elizabethan rhythm and diction. As literature, they are beyond compare. But as prayer, as the utterances of men and women passionate for God in moments of anger and praise and lament, these translations miss something. Grammatically, they are accurate. The scholarship undergirding the translation is superb and devout. But as prayers they are not quiet right. The Psalms in Hebrew are earthy and rough. They are not genteel. They are not the prayers of nice people couched in cultured language.
And so, in my pastoral work of teaching people to pray, I stared paraphrasing the Psalms into the rhythms and idiom of contemporary English. I want to provide men and women access to the immense range and the terrific energies of prayer in the kind of language that is most immediate to them, which also happen to be the language in which these psalm prayers were first expressed and written by David and his successors.
I continue to want to do that, convinced that only as we develop raw honesty and detailed thoroughness in our praying do we become whole, truly human in Jesus Christ, who also prayed the Psalms.” –Peterson, The Message, Introduction to Psalms.
BOOK III – Psalms 73–89
A psalm of Asaph.
Psalm 73, The Message
1-5 No doubt about it! God is good— good to good people, good to the good-hearted. But I nearly missed it, missed seeing his goodness. I was looking the other way, looking up to the people At the top, envying the wicked who have it made, Who have nothing to worry about, not a care in the whole wide world.
6-10 Pretentious with arrogance, they wear the latest fashions in violence, Pampered and overfed, decked out in silk bows of silliness. They jeer, using words to kill; they bully their way with words. They’re full of hot air, loudmouths disturbing the peace. People actually listen to them—can you believe it? Like thirsty puppies, they lap up their words.
11-14 What’s going on here? Is God out to lunch? Nobody’s tending the store. The wicked get by with everything; they have it made, piling up riches. I’ve been stupid to play by the rules; what has it gotten me? A long run of bad luck, that’s what— a slap in the face every time I walk out the door.
15-20 If I’d have given in and talked like this, I would have betrayed your dear children. Still, when I tried to figure it out, all I got was a splitting headache . . . Until I entered the sanctuary of God. Then I saw the whole picture: The slippery road you’ve put them on, with a final crash in a ditch of delusions. In the blink of an eye, disaster! A blind curve in the dark, and—nightmare! We wake up and rub our eyes. . . Nothing. There’s nothing to them. And there never was.
21-24 When I was beleaguered and bitter, totally consumed by envy, I was totally ignorant, a dumb ox in your very presence. I’m still in your presence, but you’ve taken my hand. You wisely and tenderly lead me, and then you bless me.
25-28 You’re all I want in heaven! You’re all I want on earth! When my skin sags and my bones get brittle, God is rock-firm and faithful. Look! Those who left you are falling apart! Deserters, they’ll never be heard from again. But I’m in the very presence of God— oh, how refreshing it is! I’ve made Lord God my home. God, I’m telling the world what you do!
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
It is dumb to please people no matter how much they are admire by you and the rest of the world. It is wise to please the One and Only who created us in His own image. God loved us so much He sent a part of Himself, His Son who died to save us from our sins that hold us in bondage (and one of those sins of entanglement in this world is pleasing impossible-to-please people in this world)!
Asaph, a choir director, questioned God’s wisdom. Asaph saw the wicked prospering and the righteous suffering. His lament ends with this conclusion;
“Until I entered the sanctuary of God. Then I saw the whole picture:
There’s nothing to them. And there never was.”
When we are confused by events in our lives, remember to ask God to give us HIS view of people and our current circumstances from His perspective. We must stop our useless activities of assumptions and presumptions and lean into God.
God welcomes our questions and doubts when we come to him honestly seeking truth. God is Good, so Good. God patiently waits for us to enter into His sanctuary of real Life through honest prayers, seeking His wisdom, insight and understanding from our point of surrender to what He sees and knows.
Only then can we truly see the “big picture” of what He sees with what He requires of us in response—to trust and obey Him while seeking justice, loving mercy, in our humbled walk with Him. (Micah 6:8)
We need is help daily to avoid the sin of relying only on what we see and feel, assume and presume, along with trying to please people in which we think have it all together. Truth bomb: None of us have it all together until we surrender to God who is ready to help us with guidance to all that is truth by His Holy Spirit living in us. Even then, we are not perfect and good; but we are perfectly forgiven by a God who knows us and helps us from the inside out and outside in—because He loves us.
God does not expect perfection—He looks for our pursuit of Him with heart of surrender.
Truth: (ICYMI) We are His and He is our God—oh, what peace there is when we truly believe Whose we are and in Whom we can cling to forever because of Jesus sacrifice!
Lord,
Thank you for the Psalms, these prayers of honest people who suffered through trials, assumed the worst, until they walked into your throne room with opened hearts, minds, and souls in surrender. Surrender means letting go of self-talk with a readiness to hear all that is true about You with who we are to You! It is a holy time to be filled with your glorious will—all that right and good for us! To you be the glory! Your Word lifts our burdens as we surrender to what Your Word says. Yes!
What are the words that come to mind as we pray daily for our children, no matter what their current age? As young children, we mostly pray for their protection as they attempt goofy things trying to figure out life stuff while exploring their capabilities, right? I just had a thought; how did Evel Knievel’s mom pray for him? Remember this dare devil who tried to break all records by jumping over vehicles with a motorcycle? (Real last name, by the way!) Can you picture him in the backyard as a toddler, lining up planks into ramps to jump his tricycle over the family dog, all while giggling at the sheer thought of doing what was forming in his mind?
As young adults maturing to be men and women in the adult world, what do we pray? Do we parents beg God to prosper them, kept from harm, so they will be content and happy in life? I hope there is more to our prayers than being happy for as we know “in this world we will have troubles”, says Jesus but added, “relax for I have overcome the world. Do they know Jesus? Is our prayer that they may know, believe, and follow Him? The best prayer we can pray and model is that our children would seek God first, trust his wisdom above all else, and strive to be men and women who desire to be like His Son, Jesus who modeled perfectly how to humbly walk with God. (Philippians 2)
Psalm 72 is Solomon’s prayer influenced heavily by his father, King David. Solomon is now the King of Israel. He was raised from childhood to know that God was the supreme King over God’s people. Solomon also knew that the man on the throne in Jerusalem was God’s representative, obligated to lead the people according to the law of God (See Deuteronomy 17:14–20). King Solomon had to be impartial in his dealings according to the Law given to Moses along with making sure that his throne was founded on God’s righteousness and justice which meant, according to Psalm 89:14, acquiring the God’s ways of Righteousness and Justice.
As we might recall, Solomon asked God for wisdom above all else as he took the throne! God answered that prayer with teaching him about His righteousness, justice, love and faithfulness.
“Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you.” Psalm 89:14
Let’s talk about these terms in order to enrich our own prayers—
God’s righteousness and justice are the bedrock of His character and sovereignty. “Righteousness” implies absolute moral perfection in doing what is right, while “justice” ensures that His judgments and rule are completely fair. Can a human be and achieve this—only by the power of God in him! Love and Faithfulness (or Mercy and Truth): These attributes of God “go before” Him. Instead of a harsh tyrant, God leads with compassion and keeps all His promises.
THIS is what and why Solomon prayed;
Psalm 72, The Message
Of Solomon. Final prayer of David, son of Jesse.
1-8 Give the gift of wise rule to the king, O God, the gift of just rule to the crown prince. May he judge your people rightly, be honorable to your meek and lowly. Let the mountains give exuberant witness; shape the hills with the contours of right living. Please stand up for the poor, help the children of the needy, come down hard on the cruel tyrants. Outlast the sun, outlive the moon— age after age after age. Be rainfall on cut grass, earth-refreshing rain showers. Let righteousness burst into blossom and peace abound until the moon fades to nothing. Rule from sea to sea, from the River to the Rim.
9-14 Foes will fall on their knees before God, his enemies lick the dust. Kings remote and legendary will pay homage, kings rich and resplendent will turn over their wealth. All kings will fall down and worship, and godless nations sign up to serve him, Because he rescues the poor at the first sign of need, the destitute who have run out of luck. He opens a place in his heart for the down-and-out, he restores the wretched of the earth. He frees them from tyranny and torture— when they bleed, he bleeds; when they die, he dies.
15-17 And live! Oh, let him live! Deck him out in Sheba gold. Offer prayers unceasing to him, bless him from morning to night. Fields of golden grain in the land, cresting the mountains in wild exuberance, Cornucopias of praise, praises springing from the city like grass from the earth. May he never be forgotten, his fame shine on like sunshine. May all godless people enter his circle of blessing and bless the One who blessed them.
18-20 Blessed God, Israel’s God, the one and only wonder-working God! Blessed always his blazing glory! All earth brims with his glory. Yes and Yes and Yes.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Could this prayer be a ways for us to pray for our leaders? What if we prayed similar words, asking God for wisdom to dwell in all our leaders who govern us? All earthly leaders are very human and uber tempted by evil from all directions! Do they not deserve our prayers if we do not agree with them? The answer is they need our prayers as much as our family and friends! What they do affects us all! These people stepped up to serve and got elected by the populus. It is our responsibility as citizens of our town, city, state, and country to respect and honor the position they are in with consistent, intentional prayer to God to give them His righteous wisdom with justice as they lead!
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” –Jesus, Matthew 6:33-34
“Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness” is a foundational biblical teaching from Jesus as recorded by Matthew 6:33. It means prioritizing God’s rule, values, and moral standards in your daily life, trusting that He will provide for your physical and practical needs without the burden of anxiety.
“The Kingdom of God” represents God’s sovereign rule, His will being done, and His presence in the world. Seeking it means placing God’s purposes, teachings, and desires above personal ambition or worldly gain.
“His Righteousness” refers to living by God’s moral standards and doing what is right in His eyes. It involves aligning our actions, thoughts, and character with His holiness. We are not perfect but He is and always will be!
“Jesus ended with the Promise“…and all these things will be added to you”. This is our blessed assurance that when we put God first, He takes care of our basic human needs (like food, clothing, and shelter).
The proclamation of Micah the prophet, centuries before Jesus came, makes total sense as Jesus reiterates God’s Truth to humanity:
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8
All believers are commanded by God’s Son Jesus, His prophets, apostles, and teachers to seek God first, ask for His wisdom, surrender, and listen as we walk humbly with God. When we ask for wisdom; God gives and gives and does not hold back! We need to pray, ask, listen, trust, and obey! Stop being anxious for what may never happen!
Don’t forget who we are in Christ as designed by God—We are created in God’s image. God’s desire is that we become our Faithful Father in all His ways. We will not achieve all His attributes on earth; therefore, as we live and breathe we must seek His wisdom of righteousness, justice, love and faithfulness in all we think, say, and do—so that the world may know Him. When we pray the promise of the peace of Christ settles our souls—just like He promised.
Lord,
Thank you for cleansing my heart, removing all that does not belong there. Thank you for renewing my mind with your peace with wisdom. Thank you for refreshing my soul with your thoughts of righteousness, justice, love and faithfulness. Thank you for the joy and peace of your salvation at work continually in me. Thank you for your relentless love for our children and their children!
May our leaders be filled with your wisdom for our good and your glory!
Our worship songs today, those with words and melody that literally grab our hearts and get the attention of our minds lost in thought with an exact message of truth at exactly the right time we need it most is borrowed from God’s Word! The composer generally writes from a place of rescue, conviction, and resolved faith in the Rescuer and Deliverer. These are the songs of praise that speak into the depths of our hearts and fills that holy space reserved alone for God.
God’s Holy Spirit, a part of God, equal to Jesus, promised by God through Jesus, does indeed come to be our Helper/Counselor/Guide/Comforter/Corrector who leads us to all that is Truth in a world consumed with lies. The Holy Spirit comes to reside deep within us at the very moment we say yes to Jesus in surrender of our will to His perfect, pleasing will for us. Christ is the Rock of our Foundation of Faith.
His Word is designed to not only teach us the path to follow with specific instructions; His Word is used to compose the songs we sing in worship that express our need of God, our love for God, our thanksgiving to Jesus for saving us, all with the growing knowledge of who God is as a testimony to others seeking to fill their emptiness with God’s Holy Spirit.
This is the secret, writes the Apostle Paul, called of God through Jesus to teach new believers gathered in church groups trying to figure out how to walk humbly with God. Paul explains the “secret” in this way and is for ALL who believe in Jesus;
“For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.
So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ. That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me.” Colossians 1:27-29, NLT (Emphasis mine)
Paul’s message was not new; He relied on and spoke the words of God as given from God’s Holy Spirit living in him—so that the world may know Jesus as the only way to God.
The Psalmist borrows from other Psalms to create new songs! Warren Wiersbe states; “The first three verses are adapted from Psalm 31:1–3, a perfectly legitimate practice among psalmists. This writer also borrowed from Psalms 22, 31, 35, and 40, to name just a few of his sources. On 71:1, see 7:1; 11:1; 16:1; 22:5; 25:2, 20; and 31:17. (On the image of the rock, see 18:2.) If the author was a temple musician, his mind and heart were no doubt filled with the psalms that he had sung day after day.
Our expressions to God, like our language itself, need not be original with us. Borrowed words and phrases, spoken from the heart, will certainly please God.” –Wiersbe Study Bible
It is the conditions of our hearts, not the words we speak, pray, or sing, that God looks upon as we honor Him.
Psalm 71, NIV
In you, Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame. 2 In your righteousness, rescue me and deliver me; turn your ear to me and save me. 3 Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go; give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. 4 Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of those who are evil and cruel.
5 For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth. 6 From birth I have relied on you; you brought me forth from my mother’s womb. I will ever praise you. 7 I have become a sign to many; you are my strong refuge. 8 My mouth is filled with your praise, declaring your splendor all day long.
9 Do not cast me away when I am old; do not forsake me when my strength is gone. 10 For my enemies speak against me; those who wait to kill me conspire together. 11 They say, “God has forsaken him; pursue him and seize him, for no one will rescue him.” 12 Do not be far from me, my God; come quickly, God, to help me. 13 May my accusers perish in shame; may those who want to harm me be covered with scorn and disgrace.
14 As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more.
15 My mouth will tell of your righteous deeds, of your saving acts all day long— though I know not how to relate them all. 16 I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, Sovereign Lord; I will proclaim your righteous deeds, yours alone. 17 Since my youth, God, you have taught me, and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds. 18 Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come.
19 Your righteousness, God, reaches to the heavens, you who have done great things. Who is like you, God? 20 Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up. 21 You will increase my honor and comfort me once more.
22 I will praise you with the harp for your faithfulness, my God; I will sing praise to you with the lyre, Holy One of Israel. 23 My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you— I whom you have delivered. 24 My tongue will tell of your righteous acts all day long, for those who wanted to harm me have been put to shame and confusion.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
We sing from the heart of the goodness and majesty of our God!
Lord,
Thank you for living within my soul. Thank you for daily cleansing my heart, renewing my mind, refreshing my soul and restoring the joy unspeakable, full of the glory of your salvation at work deep within me. Thank you for parting the waters of lies that overwhelm us each day to present Truth—You, only You. Help us to be more and more like you in every way. May our focused attention be always on You.
I am a list maker…even in retirement from my secular work. For me, what doesn’t get listed, doesn’t get done. It is also very rewarding for me to check that item off the list when it is accomplished. The list has a progression of priorities. One task cannot happen until another task is completed. And so life goes with my lists guiding my behavior and productivity.
LEADERSHIP PRINCIPLE #6: Keep a Close Check on Yourself
Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus) 